The Family's Pride
by I-A-M-T-H-E-E-N-E-M-Y
Summary: A long life together; just the two of them. Even when variables get in the way, they would always be bound to one another in more ways than one. SasuNaru, Narufem!, so it's techinically not slash.
1. Memories

Stories are usually built on a bit of truth, be it a fictional novel or a small prose poem. The truth is the foundation for all other events; the hatred of one, the impassive love of another, and the strength of the final one who gave me a rather rough shove in the right direction. This truth, in many cases, can be obscure and hard to find. But, within this story, my story, it is clear to see the truth that this story was built entirely on was the truth I grew up to know and cherish, and, eventually, love. The truth is a small one, though maybe the biggest mistake I've ever made. The truth was meeting **them. **Vague was our beginning. Hard to remember now that so many years have gone by.

But, I suppose, if such a story **must** be told, why not tell it here. Why not tell it in all the truth I know, all the truth I can provide?

I shall do that now. But, mind you, this all may go by quickly until the recent events.

So.. Shall I begin?


	2. By Your Side

It was spring. The sky was turning a bright sky blue, dotted with clouds shaped like various animals or strange body-parts, or even aliens of the imagination. Thinking about it clearly, the little boy sitting in the middle of the rather large field-- later to become his family's compound residence-- deduced that clouds could be anything you asked of them. And, for that reason, he decided he wanted to be a manipulative person, so he could test to bond of shapeshifting in a man and see exactly what he could turn him into. Though he knew what had that power-- to turn man into a monster-- he wanted to surpass it. So he sat there, staring at the clouds.

You could say that this little boy himself was a monster, but that would be an insult if ever heard. This boy was no monster, being only 8 years old, but intelligent slightly beyond that of his elders. He was an ebony-haired, ivory-skinned lad with a thin face and small lips and big charcoal eyes that would later be described as windows into his soul and more of an onyx color. What made them charcoal now was the innocence behind them; he was still a diamond in the rough, andc still had much to learn.

Sitting there in the middle of that field, thinking about ways to manipulate a man, this boy was already on the way to creating the gigantic empire he would soon come to rule. What a sad, sad existance for such an inspired boy.

"SASU-KUN!!!"

Suddenly, the boy wasn't sitting anymore. As a matter of fact, he was now rolling across the ground with a rather annoying surprise rolling on top of him. The flashes of gold invading his vision only confirmed exactly what it was; that, and the bronze and occasional sapphire invading his view.

As they coasted, the golden-haired child instantly pinned his arms down and smiled brightly down at him, straddling his waist. Though, later, this would come to be a more intimate position, for now it was a friendly gesture of fair-greetings.

The boy snorted angrily at the blonde girl straddling his waist. "Tch," he said, snarling. "Hello, dobe."

The blonde furrowed her brow and leaned in closer to him, the loose orange shirt she had on dusting his stomach and her hair, pulled up in short, pixie-like pigtails, blinding him with their light. He managed to find some sort of peace from her exotic appearance in her sapphire eyes.

"t's not nice to call me dobe, teme," she retorted, a goofy smile on her lips. Nevertheless, she got off him and offered him a hand. Smiling softly, he gripped her hand and stood up with her. While she was dressed in jeans and, as said before, that loose shirt, he was dressed in a uniform; a white dress shirt, short-sleeved, tucked into dark blue pants that were long enough to not look stupid. He could really pull off formal for a young child with a spirited imagination.

"So," she said, looking at him and smiling, her eyes closed, her whiskered cheeks moving in time with her lips. "Whaddya wanna do, teme?"

He smirked now, not allowing his smile to get used to her. If she was here, that meant Kushina was here, and Minato. He couldn't smile around them, oh, no he couldn't. Especially with his mom never leaving Kushina's side. She'd see and probably coo at her son, and Sasuke didn't want that. Especially with Itachi-nii always being nearby...

"How 'bout we play another game, like before?" Sasuke asked, and the girl, Naruto, nodded, her pigtails flailing around pathetically.

"But whaddya wanna be this time?" she asked, running around and spreading her arms. "Pirates, ninjas, logs?"

"Logs?" Sasuke asked, and Naruto smiled at him brightly. Before he knew what was going on, he felt some sort of battering ram slammed into him, tumbling him into the ground. He felt his arms pulled above his head and him being dragged across the ground towards a nearby hill. Once pulled to the top, he felt arms wrap around his waist and someone lay on top of him. Before he could protest, they began to roll down the hill, the blonde laughing hysterically on top of him. He couldn't help but let loose a few giggles of his own as they tumbled down the hill. With a soft 'poof', they landed and stopped, Sasuke now on top of Naruto, who was laughing and holding onto Sasuke's waist. He couldn't push himself up on his hands, because Naruto was gripping onto him, but he didn't care. He let himself laugh a bit, enjoying the warmth of the moment and trying hard not to ruin it with his thoughts on what his mom would do once she saw his grasstained shirt.

"Wasn't that awesome?!" Naruto yelled, whooping, and Sasuke chuckled. She let go of him and he rolled next to her, staring up at the sky. And for once, he didn't see them as manipulated masses of water, but, rather, as Naruto saw them; freedom and joy, prosperity and happiness in just going with whatever was thrown at you. It made his eyes glitter and his smile grow wider.

Sasuke looked at the girl at his side, who looked at him and smiled greatly. "Yeah," he said, his smile bigger than it was on a daily basis. "That was awesome."

She giggled, looking back up at the clouds. Sasuke looked at her whiskers; the three little scars adorned each of her cheeks and were a complete mystery to him. She never spoke of where they came from, or what happened before she got them, but they were there, taunting him. Seeing as she was in good spirits, maybe he should ask her about them no--

"Sasuke! Naruto!"

Sasuke glared at the top of the hill at Itachi, who stood there. He was so gonna get the little-annoying-brother bit later.

Naruto's eyes lit up and she hopped up from where she sat, scrambling up the hill and jumping at Itachi, giving him a hug. He hugged her back as well. Itachi had just turned 13, so he had to lean down a bit to hug Naruto. However, it seemed Itachi entirely enjoyed Naruto's hugs; as a matter of fact, it unnerved Sasuke how his aniki would only unleash his biggest smiles for the blonde ball of ADD. Sasuke first thought it was because she was so sensitive, but that wasn't the case. Sure, he showed Sasuke a few smiles, but they were never as bright or as sincere as the ones he gave Naruto.

Sasuke sat up and walked up the hill towards them, where Naruto was telling Itachi of what she did to Sasuke. Itachi let loose a small laugh, holding his smile as the delighted girl jumped around him, giving a full reenactment of the scene. Itachi clapped once it was over, and looked at Sasuke, his smile fading almost invisibly. But Sasuke noticed. He always did. "Obaksan said dinner's ready. Once dinner's done you can come back out to play."

"What's for dinner?" the blonde asked, her stomach growling.

"Ramen," Itachi replied, and Naruto's smile grew so big, it almost blinded Sasuke. She grabbed his hand-- **not** Itachi's, he grinned inwardly-- and ran towards the house, tugging him behind. Itachi followed shortly after.

* * *

After dinner, where Naruto had stuffed her face and then urged Sasuke to hurry up before noticing he was taking an agonizingly slow time on purpose and ended up dragging him back outside, the sun was setting, shooting blood-red streaks across the orange sky. Naruto took off her sandals before stepping out into the fields again, looking up at the clouds, while Sasuke stayed a bit behind to watch her. She took out her hairties and put them in her pockets, her short hair just dusting the top of her neck. She stretched upward towards the clouds, Sasuke watching as she seemed to reach for one. She then turned to look at Sasuke, an unexplainable smile on her cherub cheeks. She jogged to him, took his hands, and led him into the fields. She pulled his arms above his head, making him outstretch his fingers to reach for the sky. Then, she kneeled, untying his shoes and moving him so he stepped out of them. She pulled off his socks and put them in his shoes, putting those next to her own sandals. Then, she resumed her position next to him, reaching to the sky. They stood there in silence, reaching towards the sky, feeling the lush grass between their toes. After a while of silence, Naruto finally spoke.

"You know," she said, and he looked at her. "No matter what time of day, the clouds never leave the sky. It could be night and the clouds would still be there, tucked into the sky like stuffing in a bear." She looked at him. "Kinda like you and me."

He said nothing, unwilling to admit aloud that this was true. They were inseperable since they met. Ever since they were 4, they were teasing and hitting and biting, but all in good fun, as soon realized by Kushina and Mikoto.

Naruto suddenly turned to Sasuke, holding up her hand, as if ready to take his. "Promise me something."

He turned to her. "What is it?"

"Ya gotta promise me that you and I will always be friends. We'll always be together. Nothing will keep us apart."

Sasuke smirked. "Dobe, that's impossib--"

"Promise me."

He almost stopped smirking when he saw she was serious. **Serious. **She wanted them to be friends forever.

Hesitantly, Sasuke took her hand and nodded to her. "I promise."

She smiled brightly. "Yatta!" she said, dancing around. He watched her, smiling softly. Knowing her, her undying faith, her strength, her believing in others, she would keep this promise.

"Naruto! Time to go!" Kushina yelled out from the door, and Naruto stopped dancing. With a smile she looked at Sasuke, winked, and said, "Seeya, teme," before running to her mother. In a few moments, the whole Uzimaki family was piled into their truck, and Naruto was sending one last wave through the dashboard before they were backed onto the road and gone.

Sasuke hadn't waved back; he never did. He knew he'd probably see the dobe in the morrow.

He was going to learn very soon he was wrong; so wrong, in fact, he was off by 7 years.


	3. Colors

Nothing could be so spiritually degrading as what Sasuke Uchiha was about to face.

He sighed, leaning against the wall in the hallway. Next to him was the door leading to hell. Or, at least, his own version of hell. And, dressed in the uniform the school required, he only felt more stupid than he ever had.

True, he'd been going here quite a few years. True, he was accustomed to wearing such clothes anyway. True, he liked dressing formally. But this was all because he was forced to at a young age. It was in the Uchiha blood (minus Mikoto) to dress and act in a superior way, and, normally, the youngest Uchiha could execute this well. But the only problem for him was that one little thing standing between him and total peace.

The female gender.

He sighed roughly and almost banged his head against the wall. God, he hated women. Ever since he met Haruno Sakura and Yamanaka Ino, two bulldog-faced women who fought over him constantly and gave him no say in his own personal affairs, he couldn't seem to tolerate them, unless they were teachers. But even then, it was iffy. With girls arguing over the Uchiha's shoulder he couldn't concentrate on his academics, which led to him bringing a lot of work home with him, which led to his toned body, which led to more arguments. Fucking women. He would rid the world of all of them if they weren't vital to making babies.

He sighed. One more reason to hate God's twisted sense of humor.

Deciding he might as well get it over with, Sasuke turned to his homeroom door; it was mostly quiet inside, save a bit of chatter from the girls and the occasional burst of laughter from the boys. He wished that he could skip the girls and head straight towards the boys' side of the room, but they chose the farthest side from the door, making it impossible to pass without being spotted. Especially if you're Sasuke Uchiha. Which, in this case, he was.

Stifling a groan, he opened the door and walked inside, girls instantly turning their heads and the boys looking at the door, some growling, others ignoring him. The few that growled were his friends. Funny how that works, isn't it?

"Sasuke-kun!" Sakura was the first one to yell, jumping out of her chair and approaching Sasuke with renewed vigor in her voice. Her whole posture was laced with honey, and he found himself vaguely thinking he didn't even like honey. She leaned against a desk and winked at him cutely-- or, rather, would be cutely, if he hadn't felt the need to barf.

Still, he was polite; his okasan taught him to be nice to women, or at least tolerate them. He was glad she didn't say all women were angels. Then she'd be one blasphemous woman.

"Konnichiwa, Haruno-san," he said blankly, and, with that, he passed her by. Ino then took this as her cue to wrap her arms around his neck and wink at him, but he sneakily dodged and nodded to her as a good morning. If he had the damn option he'd rip out her arms, but that was a little too violent for a morning like this.

He sat down behind a few of the guys and listened to their conversations, ignoring Ino and Sakura's loud whispers over what to do next. To set them off, he layed his head down on the desk and waited for the first period bell to ring. God, Mondays were the worst; the girls seemed to have this thought that over the weekend, he'd grow wings, a sudden interest in women, and acquire a harp when, in reality, he would do none of those things.

The door to the classroom opened, and someone walked inside, shutting it behind them. The class went silent. He could hear chairs scooting to look at whoever entered the door, probably Kiba wearing some monstrocity of a jacket to hide his tagalong dog, Akamaru. He always got caught. Sasuke found himself wondering only barely what he wore today, but ignored it. Though it was amusing, it certainly wasn't worth blowing cover for.

He heard feet tapping across the room, coming towards him, and he wondered vaguely who it was. Once again, deciding it wasn't worth it, he kept his head down, not looking up. Even when the person stopped beside his desk, he didn't look up.

"May I sit here?"

It was a female's voice. A **female. **_No, damn me to hell if you sit here! _he found himself thinking. _Hell. No._

But he stayed quiet, pretending to be asleep. If anybody would be attracted to him simply upon sight of his hair, he was some sort of Adonis. He just wanted to pull a Britney Spears sometimes, but didn't, due to the fact that sort of behavior was associated with drug use and pregnancy, and he was neither if he had anything to say about it.

"Oi, teme," the voice said firmly, and his eyes widened. Who in their right mind would **call **_**him **_**teme?! **Whatever bitch just said that, she was asking for it. "I asked if I could fucking sit here."

He looked up, about to put this bitch in her place-- better an admirer than a replica of the principal-- and stopped short, his words choking in his throat. Standing before him was a girl dressed in the uniform, with curves, a lithe body, and tan skin. Whisker marks dusted each cheek, pink lips, long, bronze eyelashes and sapphire eyes finishing off her face. Long, blonde strands of hair were pulled back in pigtails on top of her head. She was scowling at him.

He didn't know-- or care, really-- what he recognized about her first; the blonde hair, the attitude, the skin tone, or the eyes, but whatever it was, it suddenly made his life go from boring to very complex in point-two seconds.

He finally found his voice and managed to, very shakily, say her name.

"Naruto?"

She smiled brightly. "Yeah, it's me, ya bastard," she said brightly. "Now scoot the fuck over."

**I realize that, in the first chapter, I misspelled a few things. I won't go back and edit simply because it's only a few words.**


End file.
